Mats Wilander, who was regularly mentioned as a possible coach for Andy Murray before the player took up with Ivan Lendl, thinks the Scot is “a tactical genius” and a threat to everyone left in the draw of the French Open.

While the Swede is not in the frame this time – “I didn’t say no, as I wasn’t asked,” he says – he still takes a keen interest in a player he regards as the most interesting on the Tour.

“I was very impressed with him,” Wilander said of the last-16 victory against Fernando Verdasco. “He is a tactical genius – even on clay – when his mind is switched on. He played great against [Philipp] Kohlschreiber but from the first point onwards against Verdasco he was really dictating play.”

Wilander, in Paris for Eurosport, said: “When he defends he is as good as anybody but he was really aggressive with his backhand. He was also hitting his forehand as well as I’ve seen him hit the forehand and Ivan Lendl will be very proud of what he’s watching.”

The seven-times grand slam champion is particularly impressed by the growing power and early strike of Murray’s backhand. He said: “First of all it is timing, he’s timing it so well. He hits some backhands which are literally right after the bounce. He’s hitting the target with his forehands as well but really the backhand is the one which I think he relies on. The backhand isn’t what necessarily won him the match but it caused so many problems for Verdasco and he didn’t have any answers to that shot at all.

“The strength of his upper body is unbelievable. The ball shoots through the court; more so than Novak Djokovic’s backhand at the moment. If you allow Andy Murray to do what he did it’s nearly impossible to beat him. He is great at making adjustments and if he is as confident as he is now then he’s a danger to all of them.”